It began with a sparrow. 

Moody Gray Fine Pearl Jewelry that can now be found in stores in New York and Paris, and has been featured in Paris Fashion Week and in New York Fashion Week  had quite a serendipitous beginning.

After founding the non-profit organization, Sparrow’s Wings, to help children in need both locally and in Third World countries,

Donna Moody Gray was planning the first fundraiser. Her daughter encouraged her to do something other than a car wash or bake sale saying, “How about something with Pearls? You’ve always loved Pearls.” Donna’s granddaughter chimed in, suggesting that she find a way to make Pearls young and vibrant, not the typical “granny pearls” strand. This was quite a challenge, as Donna had never attempted any “art” works, and didn’t think of herself as “crafty.” She had worked in television, both 

on-camera and as a writer/producer, and had worked designing product packaging and speaking at trade seminars.

So Donna bought a few Pearls and a bit of leather, and created the simplest possible Pearl necklaces and bracelets. It took weeks for her to teach herself to tie a good knot in the leather! To her surprise, folks bought most of the jewelry at the fundraiser, held at the nearby hospital. And then the wonderful community of St. Augustine, Florida, began to invite and include Donna and her Pearl jewelry to special local events, markets, and art galleries. And her renown and reputation spread.

Donna won the Jewelry Trend “International Design” competition in Barcelona, Spain.

Still self taught and never using patterns, Donna and her jewelry have now been featured in New York Fashion Week, and in Paris Fashion Week. The Moody Gray brand of fine Pearl jewelry is now also available in the Flying Solo stores in New York City, and in Paris France.

Donna still loves being part of the wonderful community of St. Augustine!

She still works to help children in need through Sparrow’s Wings, and she still enjoys hearing and sometimes heeding advice from her husband and her family!